Japan reaches 402 Terabytes per second Download speed

Scientists in Japan’s National institute of information and Communications technology (NICT), Discovered a way to reach these blazing speeds using widely available Fiber optic cables. For Comparison, this is around 1.6 million times faster than the American Average speed. This method of data transfer can download around 12,500 movies in 1 second! Its safe to say they have set the record on speeds at this laboratory.

Now This doesn’t mean we are gonna see speeds like this on the consumer side. The hardware in our computers could never handle it. However the real application of this new technology is in mass data transfer for infrastructure. Meaning the cables our providers use now could be rebuilt using this method. When they pull that off through all the testing we should see at least a tripling in internet speeds around the house. That is the real exciting part. Not only that they should be more reliable with fewer sudden slowdowns at random. No more buffering!!

The scientists achieved this method taking advantage of wavelengths of light previously unused for data purposes. And with commercially available cables managed to push beyond what we thought was possible. They have a long process of testing and study ahead to deploy this in the field, But its only an engineering problem now. Now the question is, will it make internet providers cheaper?

Rapid Response Police Drones

Police have started investing heavily into drones all over the united states, largely as support for active calls where it can or already has turned dangerous. Whether it be shots fired on a call or a fleeing suspect, the new drone force has been put to work. However it is not stopping there. This idea envisions drones not as just support, but also first responders. Called Drone First Responder programs or DFR these departments want drones on standby to respond to calls the second they are received.

The drone allows operators to view the scene with high definition cameras and Thermal imagers. They can then communicate with a speaker and microphone to any one on scene and relay instructions or ask questions. This can help determine the kind of call it is, or if an officer is needed to respond at all. It seems most departments deploy the drone and an officer at the same time, so if the responding officer is not called off, he will have an overhead view of the scene immediately upon arriving. In situations when stress is high, having knowledge in the form of a drone can make all the difference in officer and public safety.

Drones are going to be a real game changer in police activity, and they are not going away. They are far to useful. When tested in Chula Vista California, in over 4000 calls they arrived in less than 3 minutes to the incident scene. Often beating officers easily. In fact in 1000 of these officers were not even needed, and were called off. This allows departments to be effective even with manpower limitations. Not only that, in situations where an officer simply cannot respond to a minor call right away, the drone can simply follow the suspect until an officer can make contact.

There are a lot of considerations, such as the potential for over surveillance and data collection of large amounts of innocent people. This was brought up by a number of organizations even the ACLU. It remains to be seen how these concerns will be mitigated but police departments are going all in on the drone right now. So its probably not going away any time soon.

Autonomous Trash Boats

We all know environmental damage from plastic and garbage is a real problem. Many rivers, lakes, and even the ocean is filled with trash and pollution. Well this company based in Hong Kong has tried their hand and fixed part of that problem. They are called Clearbot.

It is estimated by the United Nations that 95 percent of plastic trash arrives in the ocean via the worlds major rivers. Eight of these are in Asia. This idea from Clearbot allows for the collection and categorization of trash and liquid pollution. It can use AI to help determine what it collects and transfer it to recycling or disposal. With the ability to collect liquid, it can also help with oil and fuel spills, one boat can achieve about 15 liters per day. Since they are so cheap they could be deployed in large numbers to really make a difference in situations like that.

Not only that they have data collection cameras and GPS trackers with the companies AI model able to determine not only what to do with the trash but also where exactly it is coming from. This little solar powered boat is able to clean 200kg of physical trash per run and can even provide emergency assistance if it is configured properly. This startup is another example of the innovation allowed by AI. Without the ability to have a trainable AI model they could never get the boat to aim for trash and avoid marine life or other objects like boats and docks. By the time the boat returns to dock, it has already categorized the haul and added it to a database for analysis. I for one hope this program take off, its a great idea!